Hitsugaya's Cat
by lollielop
Summary: Hitsugaya buys a cat. This means nothing but trouble. Please review!
1. Chapter 1

**Hitsugaya's Cat**

Disclaimer: I do not own bleach.

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Author's note:

This story was written by my sister and I. This is our first story, so please do not flame! And please review! Thank you!

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**Chapter One - Shironeko**

Hitsugaya bought a cat.

It was white and fluffy and small. Its eyes were a piercing emerald green. For some reason, he felt attracted to it, though he didn't know why. And he got even more confused after he had mentioned this to Masumoto and she had burst out laughing.

When he had gone to the material world, Masumoto had literally dragged him to the shopping mall and forced him to buy a pet.

(Flashback)

_"Eh, taichou, you have to buy a pet. You're too lonely. You really need some company. You've been stuck in the tenth division for weeks doing nothing but PAPERWORK. And apart from the occasional visits from Hinamori, you never smile at all." Masumoto whined._

_"I'm perfectly happy the way I am, thank you. I have no need for a pet. Additionally, I would not be stuck doing paperwork all the time if you would get rid of your sake and stop slacking all the time." Hitsugaya headed towards the exit._

_"Taihou, if you won't buy one, I'll force you to." Rangiku said. Hitsugaya ignored her and continued towards the exit. Masumoto narrowed her eyes. "Fine. Have it your way."_

_She marched forward and grabbed Hitsugaya's waist and slung him over her shoulder. "Hey! Put me down! As your superior, I order you to PUT ME DOWN!" Hitsugaya shouted angrily, beating Masumoto's back but it was in vain. Several people stared. One even asked, "Do you have trouble controlling your child?" This was of course, a huge mistake. _

_Hitsugaya's beating abruptly stopped. He looked up slowly and gave the unfortunate shopper his worst death glare. A vein was throbbing on his forehead. "What did you just say?" he said in a deadly quiet voice. _

_"Uh…uh…nothing…" The poor guy stammered. Then Hitsugaya said to Masumoto, "This is all your fault. Prepare yourself for the hugest stack of paperwork you have ever seen." Masumoto gulped but continued towards the pet store. Upon reaching, she plunked him down on the floor and avoided his gaze. _

_She needn't have bothered. He too was engrossed, staring at a cat with white fur. Seeing this, Masumoto beamed. "That settles it, then. Taichou, you're getting that cat."_

_"Wha…What?" Her voice snapped him out of his daze. "No! I don't need a pet…I'm fine as I am…" He protested feebly. But Masumoto was already pointing to the cat and talking rapidly to the shopkeeper. Hitsugaya buried his face in his hands and sighed._

(End Flashback)_  
_

That was how he had gotten a cat. And although he would never admit it to anyone, he was secretly glad that Masumoto had made him buy this cat.

The cat stared into his eyes and meowed. Hitsugaya smiled and cuddled it tight. The cat was one of the few things that he had ever thought was cute.

Then he thought: _I should probably give it a name_. So he named it. "From now on, I shall call you Shironeko.

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End of chapter one.

Please review!!


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own bleach.

Author's note:

Thanks for the reviews! And in case we may not be able to update that fast, we want to say in advance that there are a lot of things that we have to do and we are very busy now. But please continue to review, we will try our best to update the story.

**Chapter Two**

"Whitey-chan, what's this?" Yachiru bounced around him like a rabbit that ate too much sugar. "It's so small, and it looks like you. Is it a voodoo doll? I wanna squeeze it!" So saying, she bent down to grab it.

"NO!!" Hitsugaya shouted. Yachiru straightened up and looked hurt. Then she ran off, yelling, "Ken-chan! Whitey-chan yelled at me!" Hitsugaya sighed. He estimated about ten seconds before Zaraki came. He was in for a whole lot of trouble.

Eight seconds later, a huge voice bellowed, "HITSUGAYA! HOW DARE YOU MAKE YACHIRU UPSET! PREPARE TO DIE!"

Hitsugaya immediately shunpoed three metres away from his original spot. It was fortunate that he did, because an instant later there was a huge gaping hole where he had stood previously. Then he remembered Shironeko. Oh no...What was he going to do?

He had no time to think, because Zaraki's figure loomed into his view, his sword raised high. Hitsugaya dove out of the way and a building nearby collapsed.

Hitsugaya had no wish to fight with a demented man who went about destroying buildings. He shunpoed all over the place, all the while looking out for Shironeko. Of course, Zaraki was in a frenzied rage, randomly slashing the air around him and roaring that Hitsugaya was a coward. Although Hitsugaya was not in the least provoked by Zaraki's comments, he was extremely worried about Shironeko's safety. What if one of Zaraki's slashes hit Shironeko? The result would be disastrous.

It was probably because of this reason alone that Hitsugaya decided to release Hyouinmaru. In an instant, the ground was frozen and covered with a layer of snow. Zaraki smiled. "Heh. You finally decided to stop running. But I bet you still can't beat me, even with your zampaktou released."

Now that Zaraki had stopped slashing around, Hitsugaya took this opportunity to scan the ground for Shironeko. The white snow made it harder for him to look for the Shironeko, who also had white fur. To stall Zaraki, he created a barrier of ice and snow to temporarily contain him. The ice surrounded him, forming a tall cylinder with Zaraki trapped inside. Snow from the ground was tightly packed and compressed around the wall. It would take Zaraki at most a minute to break out of it. Hitsugaya had to use his time while he could.

With the snow on the ground removed, the pavement was showing through. It would be easier to spot Shironeko now. And suddenly, Hitsugaya did see Shironeko. Shironeko was huddled into a ball for warmth and had taken shelter under the roof of a house. Fortunately, Zaraki hadn't managed to hit Shironeko. Hitsugaya sighed with relief.

Then he heard the barrier cracking. Hitsugaya immediately grabbed Shironeko and shunpoed towards the fourth division. Shironeko was so cold in his arms. If anyone could help Shironeko, that person would be in the fourth division.

Two seconds later, he heard a distant cry of fury, "HITSUGAYA!" He just shunpoed even faster.

Soon, he reached the fourth division. Hitsugaya was desperate now. Shironeko seemed dead, so still and unmoving. Shironeko needed help, and fast. He didn't bother to ask, he just barged right in the office. "Unohana-taichou, I need your help. Please."

Unohana was about to reprimand him about knocking before entering. But something in his tone stopped her, and instead she asked, "What is it that you want?"

"It's Shironeko, my cat. I think it's about to die." Hitsugaya said.

Unohana immediately put her work to one side and stood up. She crossed over to him and took a look at Shironeko. "Hmmm...it is alive, but there is not much I can tell right now. Please wait a while until I call you back in. I need to examine it."

Hitsugaya nodded. He exited her office, leant on a wall and sighed. If Shironeko was going to die because of him, he wouldn't be able to live with himself.

Five minutes later, Unohana came outside. "Shironeko will live, but only if you put part of your soul into it. Shironeko's body temperature is dangerously low, too low for it to survive on its own. Because snow is your element, if you put part of your soul into Shironeko it should be able to survive the cold. I am reasonably confident that this procedure will work. However, there might be some side effects. Do you want to do this?"

Hitsugaya immediately replied, "Yes."

"Very well." Unohana took him into her office again. Shironeko was still curled up on a sofa. "You have to put some of your reiatsu into it. I hope this will work."

Hitsugaya concentrated and let his reiatsu flow into Shironeko. A few minutes later, Shironeko's body shifted and it slowly stood up. It blinked. And then it spoke, "Thank you."

End of chapter two.

Please review!!


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own bleach.

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Author's note:

Thank you for all your support! We hope to update soon, but sometimes we really are just too busy. All the same, please keep those reviews coming:)

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_Text_ – Hyouinmaru (in Hitsugaya's head)

_[Text_ – Shironeko (in Hitsugaya's head)

Text – Hitsugaya (in his head).

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**Chapter Three**

Hitsugaya blinked. Did Shironeko…just…talk? But…but…that was impossible! Cats can't talk! Even Hitsugaya, with his limited knowledge on the material world, knew this. It was impossible. But then, Shironeko talked again.

"Thank you for saving me."

Okay, now Hitsugaya was definitely shocked. He wasn't dreaming, the cat had talked twice. Maybe he was hallucinating. Or maybe he was drunk. But that was impossible; he hadn't drunk sake since…forever.

"But I must say, if not for you, I wouldn't have been freezing to death anyway. So, it's all your fault. I owe you nothing." Shironeko continued.

Oh great, now Shironeko had an attitude, too. How come he could talk anyway? As if reading his mind, Unohana said, "The procedure must have had some side effects, like I said. This must have resulted in Shironeko being able to talk."

So that was the reason? No wonder. But that means that there might be other side effects, too. What if that spooky Mayuri wanted to conduct tests? He would never, ever let Shir-

"What did Shironeko mean by what he said earlier?" Unohana interrupted his thoughts.

"Huh? What did he say? And Shironeko's a he?" Hitsugaya had completely forgotten.

_He said that if not for you, he wouldn't have been freezing to death. And yes, Shironeko is a he. Didn't Unohana just say that? For a supposed genius, you sure are dense._ Darn. That dragon was talking in his head again.

"He said that if not for you, he wouldn't have been freezing to death." Unohana said.

"Yes, I know."

"Then why did you ask?"

"Well… nevermind. The reason is, Zaraki wanted to kill me and I released Hyouinmaru to hold him off while I found Shironeko."

Unohana frowned. "Zaraki? Why would he want to kill you?" Hitsugaya coughed. "Um, I stopped Yachiru from squeezing Shironeko. She said that he was a voodoo doll."

Unohana barely suppressed a laugh. "Well, that man has always been very protective of Yachiru. The problem is, what is he going to do now?"

As if on cue, Zaraki burst in the room, thankfully through the door. "HITSUGAYA, YOU COWARD! COME OUT AND FIGHT ME LIKE A MAN!" he roared. Then he saw Unohana, who was frowning at him. Zaraki stammered "I…I think I'll go now."

"Yes, I think that would be a good idea." Unohana said. Zaraki moved towards the exit, but before he left he shot a glare at Hitsugaya. It wasn't over yet.

_[He's going to kill you later, you know. _A voice sounded in his head. Oddly enough, it didn't sound like Hyouinmaru.

_[Of course I don't sound like Hyouinmaru. I am not Hyouinmaru. Duh._ Shironeko? Could it be Shironeko? But that was impossible…

_[If it was impossible, then you must be going insane right now and hearing strange voices in your head._

Hitsugaya was about to respond, but Unohana said, "Hitsugaya-taichou, is there a problem?" Then Hitsugaya realized that he must have been staring into space for quite a while, so he shook his head. "No, there's nothing wrong." He glanced at Shironeko. He was sitting on the couch and if a cat could smirk, then he was smirking at him. Hitsugaya shook his head, thanked Unohana and left the fourth division building and headed towards the tenth.

Don't do that. He thought.

[Don't do what? Shironeko responded.

Don't smirk at me. It's irritating.

[Well, you'll just have to live with it. I'm not going to change for you.

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End of Chapter Three.

Please review

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	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own bleach.

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Author's note:

Um. This is long overdue. The next one will probably be even longer overdue, sorry.

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**Chapter Four**

Shironeko sure could get irritating. Right now they were headed towards the tenth division and Hitsugaya was unknowingly leaving a few shinigami shaking at the cold aura that he emitted. When the tenth division building was in sight, he stomped inside and slammed the door. Unfortunately, he was a little too late, and Shironeko managed to get inside. Hmph.

Shironeko said, "You tried to shut me out." It wasn't a question, it was simply stated. Hitsugaya felt creeped out. He wasn't sure if he was supposed to answer, but he couldn't deny it. "It hasn't really been a good start since we first met. You're just making it worse."

"Well, what am I supposed to do! You're a freaky cat with attitude! I don't like attitude from my pets!" Hitsugaya scowled and sank into his chair, folding his arms and staring at Shironeko, past the huge mountain of paperwork.

"Hmm? You have more than one?"

"No! But... Argh! Just stop talking! It's freaky!" Hitsugaya was amazed at himself, how could he ever have found Shironeko cute?

"Too bad. Don't forget, I'm part of you, as you are a part of me. If I am freaky, so are you." Shironeko jumped smoothly up on the desk, curling into a contented ball of fur. "Well, you're going to have to find a place for me to stay, you know."

Hitsugaya was annoyed. "Would you get off my desk? I have paperwork to do." He shuffled the papers around on his desk, furrowing his brow as random pieces of paper dropped off and floated to the floor. Choosing to ignore it, he began scanning through the rest of the document and sorting them into neat piles. Before long, he was completely engrossed in his work.

Shironeko was regarding Hitsugaya amusedly. The white haired kid actually seemed to have forgotten him. Shironeko waved a forepaw in front of his face, but he just brushed it aside, scribbling words on the paper.

How a stack of paper could be more interesting than a talking cat, Shironeko could not understand. Well, he would find out.

Landing on the floor in one graceful movement, Shironeko examined the papers on the floor. _10__th__ Division - Budget for October._ That was nothing of interest. Though tempted to turn this worthless piece of paper into shreds, he decided to leave it alone, lest the kid get angry again. Moving on to another piece of paper, he read: _10__th__ Division – Expenditures. _Hmph. Nothing interesting, again.

Just then, the sound of the door opening made Shironeko glance sharply upwards. A brown haired girl had stepped into the 10th Division Headquarters.

"Hi, Shiro-chan!" She exclaimed. Surprisingly, Hitsugaya immediately looked up at the sound of her voice, paperwork apparently forgotten. "It's Hitsugaya-taichou," He replied, but strangely, he didn't sound annoyed, a fact which Shironeko found very interesting.

"Ooooh! So cute!"

It appeared that the girl had finally noticed him. Shironeko gave her his sweetest smile. Out of the corner of his eye, Shironeko noticed that Hitsugaya was frowing. "Don't be deceived, Momo. Shironeko's actually the most irritating mammal that ever lived, in the whole wide world. Other than Kurosaki."

"But Shiro-chan! Shironeko's too cute to be irritating! See, what adorable eyes! And they're the same colour as yours! Is Shironeko a girl or a boy, anyway?" She picked Shironeko up and hugged him tight.

Hitsugaya was startled. Shironeko's eyes were NOT the same colour as his! Also, why was she cuddling him, and why was he so silent, Hitsugaya could not fanthom. Eventually, he managed out, "A boy."

"Oh!" Then for some unexplainable reason, she started laughing. Hitsugaya was confused. What he didn't know was that Momo was laughing for the exact same reason Masumoto did, when she first helped him pick Shironeko.

Shironeko, on the other hand, was rather amused by the whole affair. It seemed that he was amused a lot these days. He didn't mind in the least being cuddled by Momo, whoever she was. It was comfortable, more comfortable than the desk, at least.

And yes, Shironeko knew the answers to both Hitsugaya's questions. Of course he did. But watching the kid confused (and possibly jealous) was one of the funniest things he'd ever seen, and he wasn't about to spoil it now.

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End of Chapter Four.

Please review!!

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